Like so, they progressed through the Feyul-inhabited tunnels with relative ease. Dharen eyed the two brothers, Beran and Held. Out of all of the members of the group that Duende had chosen, they were the ones whose abilities he knew the least about.

The only things that he had been able to discover thus far were their Seed types. From his understanding, Beran had Awakened to a Seed of Lethargy; his main attributes appeared to be Vitality and Wisdom, along with reduced Endurance. Meanwhile, Held had Awakened to a Seed of Agitation; he held increased attributes in Strength and Endurance, and a decreased Wisdom attribute.

Though he had participated in spars against the two, they had never used any abilities that he had noticed; the only purpose the spars held had been to sharpen one’s weapon combat. Beran used a longsword and shield combination, while Held had a massive bow that was typically unstrung and placed across his back like a staff. Now, Held had strung his bow, and Beran had begun to loosen his sword in its sheath as if testing whether it would catch on the leather. Because of that, when he noticed the two brothers start to chase after the Feyul that had managed to get away, he let them take the lead.

He may have no wish or intention to become their enemy, but it was important to have a strong grasp on even his allies’ abilities. Riell and Ethan lightly bickered behind him, seemingly unconcerned with the current situation.

Dharen followed the two brothers as they strode through the darkness, booted feet proudly announcing their arrival to all creatures with ears to listen. Dharen winced slightly. It was clear that each and every one of his teammates did not appreciate the beauty and advantage of stealth. In fact, it was almost as if they were tempting the Feyul to ambush them in droves. He had to admit that it had so far been a fairly winning strategy; the members of the group were all powerful enough that they could hold their own in an otherwise overwhelming scenario.

From the sounds of fighting emanating from the darkness ahead, Dharen could tell that Beran and Held had managed to track down their quarry and then some. There was a thud, as a body collapsed to the floor. Dharen finally closed the distance, now able to make out the scene through the surrounding darkness of the cave.

Beran and Held were fighting numerous Feyul that swarmed an enlarged chamber of the cave in droves. Yet, many of the Feyul were not fighting them. Instead, there were two oddities. The first was a number of the Feyul that were staggering about as if drunk, many of which then collapsed to the floor, asleep. The other oddity was more destructive. A few of the surrounding Feyul, rather than target the two human brothers, had chosen to fall upon their own brethren. They were enraged, filling the air with the sounds of snarling, gnashing teeth, and whipping tails. The agitated Feyul ripped through their surprised brethren in a flurry, before eventually being put down due to their reduced numbers.

Beran reached out a hand, sending forth an ice-blue bolt of light. It impacted a nearby Feyul and, just as the others, it began to stagger before falling into a lethargic somnolence. Held, on the other hand, removed an arrow from within his quiver. He slid two fingers along the arrowhead, causing the metal to alight with a brilliant flame. Held nocked the altered arrow to his bowstring, bending back on the draw quickly. He let loose, sending the flaming arrow whistling into the crowd. It struck a Feyul, causing it to howl out in pain. The creature’s howls quickly morphed into shrieks of rage, as the Feyul that was affected then turned upon its own companions, savaging the nearest targets with a feverish passion, inciting turmoil from within the ranks of the creatures.

Soon, the brothers’ strategy shifted. With a burst, the space around Beran erupted in an icy chill, frost coating the surrounding stone; where he stood, a frozen world unfolded. Beran unsheathed his longsword, and then pulled a shield from his back. He held it in front of him defensively as the Feyul approached. They entered the range of his frozen domain, slowing significantly as the chill seeped into their vulnerable bodies.

Held, still standing behind his brother’s guard, slowly raised his hand; he, too, was affected by Beran’s cold. He placed it upon Beran’s shoulder, and Dharen recognized the glow of an ability being activated. In the next moment, Beran’s face split into an expression of rage. His eyes lit strangely from within as if by an artificial fire.

He rushed forward, his shield held before him like a battering ram. Unlike his enemies, the cold seemed to have no hold over him. Additionally, whatever Held had done had increased his speed and power notably. Thus, Beran weaved in and out of the comparatively slow-moving monsters. He had his way with them, stabbing viciously, engrossed in a blind fury.

Soon, Dharen could tell that the man was flagging. Even with the combination of his brother’s power boost and his own slowing effect, he was beginning to display some difficulty continuing. Though Held’s ability had empowered the man, it had also caused him to attack without regard to his low pool of stamina. The rage began to subside, and pants of rage quickly transformed into pants of exhaustion. He backpedalled tiredly, his raised shield and the slowing effect of his frozen domain allowing him safe passage from within the ranks of remaining Feyul.

He let out a shout to Held, indicating that he needed a moment to recover., and staggered past Dharen. Then, to Dharen’s incredulity, he sat down and fell asleep.

Dharen sighed, pulling Restraint at the ready. He walked forward, as Held let loose arrow after arrow. In the close confines of the cave, each found their mark. Though the first that landed caused a Feyul to turn against its brethren once more, those that followed were simply regular arrows - albeit loosed with extreme power. Just as Dharen had expected, Held had soon begun to run low on both Spirit and arrows.

A chilling cold then radiated from behind him, and Beran darted ahead of him. The world frosted over once more. Dharen realised that the man must have an ability that allowed him to put himself to sleep for a moment in order to quickly regenerate his stamina. That was the only explanation for how rapidly Beran had come back from his exhausted state. Held dropped back so that his brother, now fully rejuvenated, could take his place at the front.. As the two brothers passed one another, Held put out a hand in order to reapply his ability. Beran grew frenzied once more. In the end, with the Feyul ranks in disarray and Beran back to full fighting strength, it wasn’t long before they were naught but corpses littering the floor.

Dharen, having relaxed after seeing that he would not be needed, watched warily for additional Feyul ambushers. Though the brothers had handled the previous fight admirably, and against numerous enemies, he knew that they were at their most vulnerable following such a battle.

Fortunately, the only thing that ambushed them was the sound of cackling laughter. Riell and Ethan walked out of the darkness, with Riell slapping at Ethan’s back before doubling over with mirth. Judging by Ethan’s demeanor, he did not appreciate whatever had been said.

Eventually, Riell straightened, wiping away at the corner of one of her eyes. She sobered suddenly. “Alright, enough messing around. Let’s get this mission over with. The Nulzan tribe eradication quest should be issued later today, and we don’t want to be late to the party.”

The others nodded, expressions taking on a grim aspect.